NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft mission, launched on Sept. 8, 2016, is the first U.S. mission designed to retrieve a pristine sample of an asteroid and return it to Earth for further study. The mission's target is Bennu, a carbon-rich ...
Space Exploration
Oct 8, 2020
3
239
University of Alberta scientists have uncovered the formation mechanism behind a class of mineral deposits that have been hotly contested until now. The findings shed new light on how iron deposits, among others, form—and ...
Earth Sciences
Sep 23, 2020
0
122
Research has found a proposal to regulate mining of Indigenous lands in Brazil's Amazon rainforest could affect more than 863,000 square kilometers of forest and harm the nation's economy.
Earth Sciences
Sep 18, 2020
0
219
Several minerals suffer radioactive self-irradiation and experience long-term changes to their properties. The mineral monazite behaves like Camembert cheese in which holes are drilled: existing radiation damage heals itself. ...
Materials Science
Sep 9, 2020
0
465
Researchers have discovered how a protein in plant roots controls the uptake of minerals and water, a finding which could improve the tolerance of agricultural crops to climate change and reduce the need for chemical fertilizers.
Plants & Animals
Sep 4, 2020
0
350
A new way to treat acid mine drainage (AMD) could help transform the environmental pollution problem into an important domestic source of the critical rare earth elements needed to produce technology ranging from smart phones ...
Earth Sciences
Aug 5, 2020
3
2990
From the creation of a single droplet to the flow of a river and the world's hydrological cycle—how water binds together, and to different surfaces, has far-reaching consequences. Examining water through a new lens, a group ...
Materials Science
Aug 4, 2020
0
253
In the summer, many people enjoy walks along the beach looking for seashells. Among the most prized are those that contain iridescent mother of pearl (also known as nacre) inside. But many beachcombers would be surprised ...
Materials Science
Jul 15, 2020
0
166
A research team including research scientist Atsuko Kobayashi from the Earth-Life Science Institute (ELSI) at Tokyo Institute of Technology, Japan, and research scientist Mizuho Koike from the Institute of Space and Astronautical ...
Space Exploration
Apr 29, 2020
1
361
Inspired by how human bone and colorful coral reefs adjust mineral deposits in response to their surrounding environments, Johns Hopkins researchers have created a self-adapting material that can change its stiffness in response ...
Materials Science
Apr 17, 2020
0
353
